OSHA mandate to wear face coverings and be tested weekly for COVID-19 takes effect

Jan. 11, 2022

In September, President Biden shared his 6-pronged strategy to combat COVID-19. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its emergency temporary standard (ETS) on Nov. 5 for employers with at least 100 employees that has several requirements, including requiring employees who are not fully vaccinated to test weekly for COVID 19 and wear face coverings over their noses and mouths at all times while indoors in the workplace, unless they are actively eating or drinking or alone in a room with walls from the floor to the ceiling and a closed door. Due to the potential for significant fines from the federal government, the testing and face covering requirements will be strictly enforced.

The ETS takes effect in 2 phases and remains in effect for 6 months from Nov. 5. Implementation of the ETS may change as a result of the petitions currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Following is a summary of the ETS requirements:

Phase 1 by Jan. 10

• All employees — fully vaccinated, partially vaccinated and unvaccinated — are required to inform their employers of their vaccination status.
• Associates who are not fully vaccinated or have not submitted acceptable proof of vaccination must wear a face covering over their noses and mouths at all times while indoors in the workplace, unless they are actively eating or drinking, or alone in a room with walls from the floor to the ceiling and a closed door. Associates who are not fully vaccinated or have not submitted acceptable proof of vaccination must wear face coverings even while working in office cubicles.
• Fully vaccinated associates follow our face covering requirement.
• Employers must be in compliance with requirements unrelated to testing — like providing paid time for employees to get vaccinated and recover from side effects.

Phase 2 by Feb. 9

• Employees who have not provided acceptable proof of full vaccination status are required to be tested and provide documentation of a negative test result on at least a weekly basis. Until further notice, Publix will provide free tests at work for associates who are not fully vaccinated so they can self administer in the presence of a Publix proctor while on the clock. Associates may also choose to be tested following the ETS requirement at their own expense outside of work. In order to meet the Feb. 9 deadline, Publix will begin testing associates who are not fully vaccinated on Feb. 3 in order to avoid everyone testing at 1 time.

Your next steps by Jan. 12

• If you’ve been partially or fully vaccinated and have not submitted proof of vaccination, you are required to bring in your vaccination card or acceptable proof of vaccination status, so your manager can record the information. If you are partially vaccinated or choose not to disclose your vaccination status or submit acceptable proof of full vaccination, you will be considered not fully vaccinated.
• Visit the OSHA Requirements page to find the
  • acceptable forms of vaccination proof
  • emergency temporary standard policy
  • face covering requirement for associates who are not fully vaccinated
  • additional vaccination information, including if you’re interested in getting vaccinated while on the clock or experience side effects after getting vaccinated and cannot return to work and
  • testing requirement for associates who are not fully vaccinated.
• If you’ve already submitted proof you are fully vaccinated, you should verify the vaccination status displayed on PASSport is correct and will need to continue to follow our current face covering policy found on PASSport.

Questions

Please talk to your manager. For more information about the benefits of vaccines, review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Key Things to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines.